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NM State Softball vs Nebraska

The Aggie/Nebraska match up on March 19th was the first collegiate softball game I’ve shot since late in the 2009 season.

The previous evening, the Aggies upset the nationally ranked Nebraska team 4-3. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t have much of the same luck against the No 14 team for the rest of the weekend. The game I shot, the first of a double-header, was well played by the Ags; they made a late game comeback, but fell short 5-7.

Like baseball, the softball field is pretty limited as far as positions to shoot, and since there were other photogs around, I choose to spend most of my time on elevated platforms just beyond the first and third bases. While the platforms offer a great view of the action, one can’t help but feel a little exposed with the softballs flying around.

My choice of lenses were my 300 and the the 300 with a 1.6 extender for action at home, outfield and the base opposite of me. Since the extender tends to degrade the quality a bit, I kept everything at f/5.6 or above. It was nice and bright, so the shutter speed was not a factor. For second base and the base closest to me, I chose the 70-200.

I tend to fanatical about using prime lenses and the image quality I get from using them, but even the zooms begin to get sharp at f/5.6, so I can relax when I’m shooting outdoors with them.